Knockhill Trackday

There will be many here with more experience than me but I’ve raced at knockhill and loved the place , it’s a small circuit and fairly easy to get to grips with, the circuit staff are spot on, the only place I had an issue was the final turn it’s off camber and a bit tight, if it’s you’re first time just take it nice and easy ,try to learn it and get some instruction if you can! Oh and get some wets! You’ll have a great time,enjoy

 

@Martin Ducati Glasgow is your man.

 

You could look into hiring a track bike for the day. Not sure if Smallboys go that far north but someone will I suspect.

 

749 is perfect for the track around there. Best to learn your own bike on track as opposed to all the expense of buying another bike that feels different anyway.

It’s your first track day so there are some simple rules to follow.
1) Simple bike preparation is essential. Make sure tyres are in new/good condition. Loads of folks go up on old tyres to “finish them off”. I totally disagree with that concept - always best to have the best grip possible under you when you are going on a track.
Make sure pressures are good and due to your novice status at the moment, don’t get too sucked into what pressures to run etc. irrespective of tyre make, about 32psi front and 30 rear cold will suffice for now until you progress.
Leave suspension on whatever your road settings are for now.
Check brake fluid but don’t top up. If fluid is low, that means your pads are worn/wearing (usually). Always leave a good air gap about the fluid in the reservoir to allow fluid to heat/expand. If fluid is very low, get new pads in and the fluid level will return to correct level - never ever overfill.
Chain tension, oil level, nut and bolt check (don’t over tighten) and general safety check.
If you can be arsed, remove mirrors and number plate assembly. At the very least, put tape over your mirrors, you don’t need them on track - the rider behind must pass you safely, you do not need to pull out of their way. Don’t do life savers either, focus in front of you, what’s behind you has already happened.
2) wear correct gear, full leathers or zip all the way round two piece, no touring materials. Good lid, boots, gloves etc and must have back protector.
3) arrive early enough so you can get in, relax and calm yourself as you’ll most likely be bricking it! Don’t worry, totally normal feeling, we’re all the same, it will pass after a couple of minutes on circuit. Find where briefing is and listen closely, they’ll tell you all you need to know (save me typing for hours! Lol)
4) there may be an instructor available, if poss get some tuition, if not, don’t panic just get on and follow the mob.
5) important- when riding up the pit lane on your way onto circuit, take three deep breaths and push your shoulders down as you exhale ( helps relax the shoulder tension). This works really well.
6) Now you’re on track, TAKE YOUR DAMN TIME, don’t push too hard, that’s when accidents are more likely, there’s no prizes for making an arse of it. Your first 3 or 4 track days are about learning the place and having fun, not doing something stupid.
EVERY TIME YOU LEAVE THE PITS YOU MUST WARM YOUR TYRES, this takes at least two to three laps so warm up to it. At every moment be mindful of tyre temps.
Typically there are cones for corner entry, apex and exit, thread them together and the lap will come.
Learn your braking markers, these are static points around the circuit you can use to brake at for each corner every lap (like the bridge on the straight), when you get comfortable with these, you can “push” them towards the corner a few feet at a time and find another marker. (Don’t use a shadow ffs! I could tell you a story about that.)
Learn gear shifts on approach to each turn and memorise.
7) don’t push yourself for too many laps at a time, if your mind starts to wander at all, you’re beginning to fatigue so pull in and drink plenty water.
Oh yeah, ignore lap times for now, chasing them almost ensures you’ll fall off.
And also, don’t try and copy a much faster rider into a turn, recipe for a disaster that is. Leave that for another day.

And that’s all you need to know for now as a novice, it’s the best thing you can do on two wheels and you’ll totally love it once you get over the initial nerves.

Once you’ve more laps and events under your belt, you’ll get into it and gain knowledge and experience that will let you progress. I’ve done literally countless hundreds of trackdays all around Europe and every day is a school day, you’ll always learn something, it’s great for that. Good folks and great craic too.

Lastly, it’s not about passing people, that’s racing, this is a track day, it’s different. As a novice, you’re going to get passed a lot, know that before you go, it doesn’t matter at all, you’re there for fun and safety. Stay on the line and try to be predicable and the fast blokes will pass you in the blink of an eye, without incident. it’s highly unlikely you’ll get someone underneath you going into a turn, again, that’s racing!

But keep in mind, you’re not knitting out there, it’s motorsport so be careful.

Hope this helps, please report back when you’ve done it and let us know how you get on.

Mart

 

Not sure I’d take my pride and joy mint bike on a trackday.

There’s always the risk you could crash, or someone crashes into you, as above, it’s not racing but mistakes happen.

Either way you’ll have a great time but it’s addictive, so be prepared for a new hobby

 

You’re absolutely correct, can’t disagree with you whatsoever, it is a possibility but in my experience, a relatively slim one.

I’ll try and put a little perspective on it.

Typically novices are being very careful and take it steady which in itself limits the risk greatly. Usually it’s when someone starts to push on that it can hit the fan.
As for collisions, again novices are given bibs to wear so other riders can give them a load more room and it works. I’d be lying if I said I’ve never seen a coming together on track but in all the 18 years of running them and instructing up there, it has happened only a few times and genuinely I don’t think any novices were involved (that’s from memory but I’m being genuine).

And let’s not forget, the simple truth is, you are far far more likely to have an off on the road than you are on a track. A track is a controlled environment with consistent grip levels, Marshalls at every corners with flags, run offs and everyone is going the same way. A road has none of those benefits but folks push on regardless, road riding is where you are at more risk of dropping it which is contrary to most peoples ideas.

And you’re dead on, it’s properly addictive!!!
Mart

 

I’ve had one friend who crashed on his first trackday. Unfortunately the bike in front dumped its oil everywhere about 20 seconds before he arrived. We sorted it, he was back out, and simple fairing repaint was needed.

Novice offs tend to be run off ime as they get more confidence during the day. Overtakes are normally lots of space, and not dive bombs as they can be especially in inters, which is why you see large groups congregating towards the end of a session as most are ‘after you sir’ riding.

I tell all my friends, anyone really, just ride like a fast road ride where you know nothing is coming the other way and there are no man hole covers and nastiest to trip you up. Look forward. Keep consistent lines. Enjoy it!!

And I 100% agree with Martin: do it on your own bike. You know it, how it feels etc and you get to learn a bit more about its capabilities

Sign up, turn up, fuel up, enjoy!!

 

I'd say take your own bike rather than rent something you don't know or save up for a cheap track back of unknown quality.

Get the best track day insurance you can if you are worried about the cost of restoring it in the unlikely event of an accident.

There's lots of good advise above, but another option although a little further away would be to get down to British Superbike School and do one of their track based training sessions which doesn't require any special clothing or bike prep from yourself and will teach you more about what you and your bike can do.

 

Please make sure you read ALL the small print of any track day insurance you look at before committing. From my experience, gravel rash is excluded and nothing short of a total write-off will get you a pay out and then the excess is over £1000. Andy

 

No worries at all. Glad to have helped, I remember all too well the first time I was going to a track, thought I was gonna come back in bits! Lol I musta done somewhere in the hundreds of thousands of laps now. Couldn’t even begin to count. You’ll not regret getting into it apart from the fact, the faster you get - the more you spend on warmers, paddock stands, tyres, vans, fairings, leathers. (This list is literally almost endless)
You have been warned!!

As to tyres, most modern sport tyres are superb and the reality is that most riders apart from the very quickest, will go as quick on these as a slick, they really are that good. So as long as you’re on decent sports rubber, just go for it.

And I think Android might be right, track insurance can be prohibitively expensive. But honestly, the chances of the worst happen is actually very slim if you’re careful. But it’s buyer beware, you need to make your own mind up mate.

Mart

 

Good road tyres are fine. Just make sure they are in good condition, not on their last legs, and have a look at the pressures that the tyre guy on site (most Trackdays have a tyre guy) may recommend. If you are riding, rennet to inflate again before leaving!